The Portland daily press., 1887-06-02

blood of the people accumulates i'm the
Treasury But in the end the Confederate
idea will, as nsual, prevail IN that party.
same lesson so many Democrats before him
have learned The Confederate Constitution
declared in so many words that no duties or
taxes on importations from foreign nation !
shall be laid TO promote or foster any branch
of industry, and that Is the creed of the
Democratic party.
AMERICAN LABOR.
And so with all the deeply interesting and
important questions affecting American
labor and laborers. The Republican party
embracing in it the great body of the pro-
ducers of the country, has uniformly, both
by State and National legislation, adopted
every Just measure that has been proposed
to improve their condition, to promote en-
pl0yment TO regulate the hours of labor. to
secure good wages and prompt pay in good
money, and stands ready to adopt every just
measure to open their way to comfort
wealth, and to all the advanced positions in
public and private life. The Confederate
idea is that Congress has no power to do anv
of these things. 1t is unconstitutional The
Democratic party has therefore opposed the
homestead law, the tariff laws, and, in
many Of the States. especially where their
strength lay, have opposed wise laws for
the protection Of laboring men. There are
some things that laws cannot do. They cam
not regulate the price of labor or anything
4
supply and demand. American laborers do
not desire such legislation. They only want
| the free and ready means of contesting with
capital for fair division of the results of
production. We have no room in this eoun-
try for anarchists, communists or social
lsts-the worst productions of despotic gov
| ernments. All our workingmen want Is an
open field and fair chance, with the right
9I e organization, cooperation, and the
friendly sympathy Of all classes and condi
tions Of men. The Confederate idea had its
example in slavery, and now has
| its natural fruits in millions of Ia
Dorers deprived of their constitutional
rights by controlling physical force and yio-
In Republican country.
EDUCATION OF THE MASSES.
And so with the education of the masses
Oh the people. Wherever the Republicans
are In power free schools, as a matter of
course, are open to all children. free Of cost
ana the same opportunities forseducation
are open to the children of the poor and
rlch alike, without money and without
price. When the startling evidences OF IL
llteracy in the South were disclosed by the
census OF 1880, a measure was twice intro
duced and passed by Republican Senate to
appropriate large sums of money from the
national treasury to be distributed accord
ing to the number of illiterate persons in
the several States. When these measures
were sent to Democratic House they we've
=.
Confederate idea they were unconstitutional
ihey FOUND no power IN the constitution for
the. education of children. Perhaps CLEAN
OF intelligence Informed them that Democ-
Iacy ana ignorance go hand in hand
together, and this was conspiracy against
the Democratic party of the future. At all
events, these bills sleep the sleep that knows
no waking IN Democratic committee.
INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS.
So also with internal improvements. Our
country is bounded by great oceans open to
all the world, but with imperfect harbors.
and Is cut by vast rivers, the highways for
the cheapest possible transportation with
bars and falls and snags that pre-
vented, or impeded their use 1t has
6een the policy Of the Republican party,
during every Congress when it had
the power, to appropriate money from the
national treasury to remove these obstacles
TO commerce, and to open these highways to
tne Tree and untaxed use Of the people. The
more or less, to this policy, but great works
were III progress, and by the common con-
sent OF both parties, Congress- at its last
session, passed bill in the usual form. to
provide Tor the, most important works. 1t
was sent IN ample time TO the President for
MS approval, but he had been so busy in
reading and vetOing pension bills to Union
soldiers that he had no time to read the river
ana harbor bill.- So this great measure Of
internal improvement was defeated and
numberess unfinished works are DELAYED
ana others destroyed by the pocket veto Of
Democraticl President. | tell you common
saying that the President would have found
Time 10 sign 1t, but chat there was small
appropriation in the bill for the Hennepin
Canal.
And so with the great public policy of
strengthening our commercial relations with
the American republics and the Dominion Of
Ganada. growing feeling exists in the
Republican party that liberal measures
should be adopted to increase our trade, to
establish lines of steamships, to improve
postal facilities, to make commercial treaties
ana anu 10 invite friendly conference with
these countries. But this has met with no
favor with the Democratic party.
THE TREASURY SURPLUS.
Only one Affirmative measure was pro-
posed Dy IL, and that was to reduce the sur
plus IN the treasury. 1t was said that the
ihepuDIlcan party was boarding vast sums of
ldle money TO make times hard; that they
would scatter 1t among people. The Repub-
ncan party had adopted the policy of receiv-
ing gold and silver coin into the treasury and
1or tne convenience of the people to issue
certlncates for 1t which circulated as money.
II nad also adopted the policy of maintaining
In the treasury from leo to 40 millions OF
com to secure prompt redemption of United
| States notes. All other money received in
the treasury was, under Republican policy,
aaPplieu aPp 20 the payment of the public debt.
Ihls pollcy was pursued with such success
tnat the bonded debt was reduced from S.
756, ,431, Al 43 to 81, ,375, ,352 1881 and the in
tterest OF the debt from 151 millions to AZ mil
mons: our Democratic friends in the canvas
| Oh lSo4, promised to pay out all the idle mon
| ey They said it was kept.to make money
scarce; 1t should be divided among the peo-
| pie. what was the result? A Democratic
secretary kept piling up more idle money;
| 10 give MN an excuse for doing so he
changed the form:of the debt statement. He
excluded the whole mass of fractional silver
| coin from the count. He increased the bal
ance on hand 80 millions more than the Re
publican party had done. For two years a
Democratic House, with fifty majority with
sole power on the subject, has been trying to
| ma way to reduce the surplus but utterly
ialled to agree. And now new Democratic
| House, 1t Is said, issto be called upon in ex-
ira session to solve the riddle. The business
community is beginning TO feel the sense of
danger, and the cry is coming Good Lord,
| deliver us"
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.
The President has received great credit in
| certain quarters for the support he has given
to the civil service law. This law only ap-
plies 10 clerical services in the great Offices
ana departments OF the government. Now
TINS IS a Republican measure for which
voted with the great body of the Republican
members of the Senate and House, and
VIII join heartily in approval in its just and
ilrm enforcement. put now an ingenious way
| has been found substantially to get rid of the
law by requiring old and experienced en-
| ployes, who have become by long training
Invaluable to the public Service, to pass a
school examination to test whether they
ought to be retained or not. | am afraid
such test would clean out even so excellent
a body as the Illinois Legislature. know
1t would seriously affect many heads Of de-
partments. And now it is claimed that
under the demands of our Democratic
| friends, hungry and thirsty after a long fast,
more than fouI-fifths of Republican officers
not embraced in the civil service law lave
been changed by the President When the
Senate politely asked for the cause Of re-
| moval, he said AZ Jack Falstaff did, "He
would not tell upon compulsion."
And so, fellow citizens, you may run the
gamnt OF all the political questions great and
small that divide the two parties, and you
will find the line of demarcation is Union
and Confederate; Republican and Demo-
cratic L am not opposed to Confederate
soldiers, but to Confederate ideas. Many
Confederate soldiers were true to the Union
until drawn by State pride to fight for the
Confederacy. have no dislike for Demo-
Gratis, many of whom | cherish as my dear
est friends, but l do dislike the tendency of
that party to Confederate IDEAS They taunt
us with waving the bloody shirt we believe
they wave the Confederate flag. Jefferson
Davis says: they "are now barring their
breasts for the rights they fought for.S' The
resolutions of the Democrats in Kentucky
are, in effect, extracts from the Confederate
constitution, and Confederates are selected
as their candidates The Democratic party